In a juxtaposition of genres, director Steven Caple Jr.’s The Land delivers a twisted, modern drug-lord tale cloaked with the innocence of a coming-of-age story. Following the lives of four young teenagers all facing a crossroads of figuring out what to do with their lives, this star-studded film (singer Erykah Badu, The Wire’s Michael Kenneth Williams, rapper Machine Gun Kelly and Sons of Anarchy’s Kim Coates) illustrates the reality of making bad choices and the power in the ability to carve out your own path.
Executive produced by Nasir “Nas” Jones, the film gives a “from-the-bottom” feel taking place in a slow, destitute area of Cleveland (a.k.a. ‘The Land’) while being backed by a Hip Hop heavy hitters-laden soundtrack infused into the storyline.
The main character driving the plot, Cisco (Jorge Lendeborg Jr.) is a lost youth with a makeshift family base looking for more. An aspiring professional skateboarder, Cisco uses his passion to keep his head up above the adversities he faces on a daily basis from lack of money, being stuck in the ‘hood to the loss of his mother. Simultaneously, the same inspiring hunger Cisco has to do better for himself leads him into desperate situations while bringing his friends Junior (Moises Arias), Patty Cake (Rafi Gavron) and Boobie (Ezri Walker) down with him. Even with a good heart and discouragement from his friends, Cisco still can’t seem to see the pitfalls laid ahead on his poorly chosen route to following his dreams.
With unexpected twists and turns, The Land leaves unsuspecting audiences entertainingly confused and pleasantly surprised. Not your typical drug-related movie, moviegoers can prepare themselves to be introduced to characters that are more authentic than generic. With Badu playing an awkwardly caring, drug-addicted prostitute, Vine star comedian Melvin Gregg going the serious route as a high-school drop out drug-dealer (Brent) foreshadowing Cisco’s future and an unanticipated motherly drug-lord; The Land is a breath of fresh air to be enjoyed in an industry following the same script.